


Empty Streets

by The_Violet_Howler



Series: (We Could Be) Immortals [1]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Backstory, Gen, Kingdom Hearts Dark Road, Scala ad Caelum (Kingdom Hearts), Xehanort Backstory
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-18
Updated: 2020-03-17
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:00:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22792882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Violet_Howler/pseuds/The_Violet_Howler
Summary: It was a dark road that led Xehanort to his death in the Keyblade Graveyard. But few understood where that road began. Only Yen Sid remembered the curious boy his old friend used to be. And of the living, none knew of the endless nights the future seeker of darkness spent crying into Eraqus' arms as his beloved home burned in his sleep every night.Prequel to (We Could Be) Immortals
Relationships: onesided Eraqus/Xehanort
Series: (We Could Be) Immortals [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1637461
Comments: 1
Kudos: 15





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Now that I've expanded the scope of my (We Could Be) Immortals fanfic project, I've decided to do a shorter fic focusing on my Dark Road theories in regard to Xehanort's backstory.  
> Title is another Boulevard of Broken Dreams reference. I know the odds of Utada Hikaru's cover of that song being the opening for Dark Road are so small they might as well be nonexistent, but a guy can dream.

#### 67 Years Before Birth By Sleep

“I’m impressed,” Eraqus said as they cleared away the chess pieces. “I can’t believe you beat me the first time you played this game.

The other apprentice grinned triumphantly. It had been a challenge, but he’d managed to overcome the curveballs and learn as he

“Like you had any more experience at this game than I did?” Xehanort replied. “I bet you didn’t even hear about it, you just made it up yourself.”

“Not true!” Eraqus retaliated, putting away the game as he looked at the clock on the wall. It was getting late, and they would be expected back at the dormitories by sunset. “Yen Sid told me about it just the other day!”

Their banter continued as they made their way up the slope towards the castle at the summit of the island, headquarters for those who trained to become Keyblade Masters and defend the light.

Apprentice Keyblade wielders three to a room in two central dormitories on the upper floors of each Citadel at the peak of the twenty islands that made up Scala ad Caelum. It was traditional for apprentices who shared a master to room together, but Yen Sid’s master had yet to take on a second apprentice, so the younger boy occupied the third bed in Xehanort and Eraqus’ room.

Everything about the way that Scala was run was communal. Apprentices slept together, ate together, trained together. Their masters said that light was made from the bonds between hearts, and that to serve the light as Keyblade Wielders it was best for one to develop as many bonds as possible. On their many walks up and down the sloped city, Xehanort often wondered how one was expected to last when they were so focused on connecting with others that they neglected their own needs.

Eraqus insisted that one’s fellow Keyblade Wielders were expected to fill the void and share the burden, lifting each other up so that each of them would have a shoulder to lean on. Xehanort could see that in theory, but in practice, he still wondered.

He was in the middle of a clever retort about how only Eraqus would dig far enough back into the history of their games to prove that his “Light of the past trick” was _technically_ a legal move when a familiar voice shattered the rhythm of their banter.

“Hey guys!” They turned to find a boy with spiky blonde hair running up the hill toward them. Five years their junior, the official story was that he’d been a tourist from a neighboring island who hit his head when his family’s fishing boat capsized during a storm.

Unofficially, he and three others had been found wandering in the abandoned catacombs beneath the citadel wielding Keyblades but with no memory of where they came from or anything about themselves beyond their names. Elrena bunked with Kira over in the other dorm, while the three boys were placed right next door to Yen Sid, Xehanort, and Eraqus.

“Hey, Ven!” Xehanort called out. “What took you so long? You missed me wipe the floor with Eraqus in our latest battle of minds.” Trailing behind the blonde were the other members of their little group. While Xehanort and his fellow apprentices spent more time with Ven than the other mystery kids from nowhere, their blonde friend made the effort to stay close to the others he’d been found with.

But Xehanort couldn’t ignore the tension in the air. Something was coming. The High Council wouldn’t publicly admit it, but their illusion of paradise was on the brink of _something_. You could see it in the way that travel between the islands was becoming less frequent. All boat travel had been restricted, and merchant caravans never took the gondolas without a Keyblade escort. Island after island was declared off limits, and at night they could see the glow of distant fires across the water.

None of the masters would ever tell them why, saying that iy was not their concern and it would all be over soon.

As much as he loved him, Eraqus could be unbearably naïve. His fellow apprentice was far too trusting of authority, believing everything their teachers told them without question. Xehanort had heard his parents scream at each other behind closed doors while insisting to his face that they weren’t fighting enough times for him to know when people were trying to keep him coddled and sheltered.

Trouble was brewing. The trouble boiling over and spilling out into the open was a matter of _when_ , not if. Xehanort didn’t see the point of delaying the inevitable, but he’d do what he was told and keep his nose out of it. For now.

The comforting chatter as his friends finished their walk up to the citadel died as the tolling of the great bells rang throughout the city. Across the island, everyone stopped. A blanket of fear settled in the air. The bells only ever tolled during times of immediate danger. When the bells rang, all Keyblade Wielders from across the islands – Masters and Apprentices – were to immediately report to the citadel on Alpha island for an emergency meeting. 

_This is it,_ Xehanort could almost hear the people around him thinking. _The storm has come._


	2. Things Fall Apart

There was standing room only in the council chamber at the top of the Alpha citadel as nearly every Keyblade Wielder known to Scala crowded into whatever space they could find to get a good view of the area. Everyone shouted and shoved as they tried to get the best seats. The anticipation in the air was so thick that if it were tangible one would be able to slice with their blade. Xehanort elbowed several older students out of their way as he made his way to the section reserved for apprentices, leading Eraqus and the others along behind him.

Finally, he managed to get them a good seat in the front row of their area, directly behind the Masters’ seating with a narrow walkway separating the older Keyblade Wielders from the younger. Eraqus sat on Xehanort’s right, and Ventus to his left, while Yen Sid, Lauriem, Elrena, and Dyem sat in the row behind them.

As more Keyblade Wielders continued to flood into the room, Xehanort looked down at the central proceedings of the council chamber. Past the rows of seats reserved for Keyblade Masters who wished to observe the council’s proceedings during public meetings, the central floor of the chamber was ringed by a low barrier that revealed the lower floor.

There were twenty members of the High Council, one Keyblade Master for each of Scala’s twenty islands. Six representatives from each island were charged to act as witnesses during meetings to maintain the integrity of the council sessions and ensure honest reporting of events. Ten dozen seats were provided for these representatives against the dividing barrier, ensuring that all had a view of the council table.

Xehanort had only been to a handful of council sessions during the years of his apprenticeships, but he always found the scrutiny placed upon the leaders of their order a tad excessive. How could the council address situations that required discretion if their every decision was watched by those who may not have the needed knowledge or skillset to properly handle an issue?

In all of Xehanort’s time training in Scala ad Caelum, the bells had only been rung once before. Between gliders and gondolas, it had taken half an hour from the first bell for the full council to assemble.

An hour had passed, and a third of the council and half the representatives had still not arrived. Worried murmurs spread throughout the room as people began to wonder what was going on. Finally, Grand Master Ruthari, strode into the room. Silence fell as the elected leader of the Order of Keyblade Wielders reached his seat and gestured for everyone to be seated.

“For millennia,” he began. “We have maintained the balance of the realm of flight. We have traveled the Lanes Between to distant lands where dark forces seek to drag us into the oblivion from which the ancient Keyblade War nearly cast us into.”

“And now,” he continued. “That darkness has come to our shores.”

A collective gasp filled the room, soft, but deafening in the stunned silence. Keyblade wielders had always ventured out to fight against the forces of darkness on other worlds, but Scala ad Caelum had always been an impregnable bastion of light. Who would dare attack this sacred land?

“Three months ago,” Grandmaster Ruthari explained. “Several Keyblade Wielders on Sigma island began exhibiting signs of having been corrupted by darkness. When one of them was confronted, they denied it, and the argument escalated until they released a burst of dark fire that destroyed the building. When the smoke cleared, they were found to have transformed into a twisted, monstrous being that radiated darkness.”

“They quickly fled, and despite all efforts to keep the situation quiet and bring them down without arousing a panic, several more Keyblade Wielders succumbed to this corruption and wreaked havoc. Eventually we were forced to quarantine the island and sent in groups of Keyblade Masters to put these Darklings down like the rabid animals they have become.”

“Since that time, the corruption has spread to other islands, and despite our best efforts to avoid mass panic, a full half of Scala ad Caelum is currently under quarantine, and the covert extermination teams are fighting a losing battle. Therefore, we are forced to declare a public emergency and announce the only recourse available to us.”

“In the absence of our fallen compatriots, the surviving members and witnesses of the High Council have determined that the only remaining course of action is to obliterate the islands in a series of coordinated strikes before this contamination can spread.”

A thunderous uproar greeted his announcement. How could he suggest such horrific measures? To harm innocents in their fight against the darkness violated the precepts of their ancient code. The man desperately attempted to calm the crowd and quell their fears.

“Believe me, everyone in this body understands the significance of what we are suggesting. None of us want to resort to such unthinkable acts. But in the face of this crisis bold action must be taken when all other possible solutions have been exhausted. This is a situation that no one could have anticipated and has withstood all conventional means of stopping it. If we do not take drastic action now, our entire civilization will be overrun.”

Xehanort barely listened as the Grandmaster continued to explain protocols and assignments for the attack, too bewildered at the farce to pay attention properly. The fact that those suspected of corruption had been declared guilty without any apparent attempt to determine the cause and help them reminded him uncomfortably of the more conservative Keyblade Masters, who believed that simply experiencing a negative emotion fueled the darkness within one’s heart, and that to stoke that inner darkness was an unforgiveable transgression.

An attitude that was unfortunately shared by a vocal portion of the council, a majority of whom were still present after the quarantine. _And how do they expect their pupils to overcome the darkness within their own heart if they do not know how to handle such strong emotions?_ He thought to himself. _How will they confront their flaws if simply feeling is a crime?_

“Xehanort!” Eraqus’ voice snapped him out of his thoughts. The silver-haired apprentice turned to his peers and found Ven and the others looking impatiently at him as Keyblade wielders of all ages filed out of the room.

“Apprentices are being confined to the dormitories for our own safety until the operation is complete,” Yen Sid explained as Eraqus led Xehanort out of the aisle toward the exit.

 _Operation,_ Xehanort thought coldly. _How clinical of them, to deny the horror of their actions and absolve their guilt by sanitizing their language._ Right then and there, he decided that he had reached the limit of how much he could tolerate the dogma preached by the Keyblade wielders of Scala ad Caelum. If the Darklings were vanquished without further incident, he intended to slip away in during the excitement before anyone knew to look for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You'll probably notice I took the Star Wars parallels from Birth By Sleep and ran with them, depicting Scala ad Caelum in the same manner of the Jedi Order in the Prequel Trilogy. I figured that tying the downfall of Scala ad Caelum to Xehanort's conversation with the Master in Re: Mind would help explain where those attitudes originated, with his later tour the Master mentions helping to cement those beliefs in his heart.

**Author's Note:**

> Credit to @Candasaurus on twitter for the theory that Ven has a stopover in Scala during Dark Road before ending up in the BBS era.


End file.
